Oocyte donation programs: strategy for improving results.

Oocyte donation is now a useful option for women who cannot start a spontaneous pregnancy for reasons related to advanced age, iatrogenic factors, early depletion of ovarian reserve, or genetic disorders. Embryo implantation rates, pregnancy rates, and pregnancy outcomes among women included in oocyte donation programs were shown to be comparable to those of spontaneous or in vitro fertilization (IVF) pregnancies. With oocyte freezing and cryobanks, recipients may have a successful response to oocyte donation, with no need to be on waiting lists, access to a larger number of oocytes from the same donor, and a lesser risk of infectious disease transmission.

Effect of piroxicam administration before embryo transfer on IVF outcome: a randomized controlled trial.

Two hundred women aged between 28 and 43 years, with infertility from tubal, male, endometriosis or unexplained factor were randomly allocated into treatment (100 patients) and control (100 patients) groups. On the day after oocyte retrieval, each patient began supplementation with progesterone 8% vaginal gel, once daily. The patients in the treatment group received a single oral dose of 10 mg of the non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug piroxicam 1-2 h before embryo transfer.

Inadvertent recombinant human follicle stimulating hormone bolus instead of human chorionic gonadotrophin leads to the retrieval of competent oocytes in IVF program.

Objective: To present a case where recombinant human FSH (r-hFSH) was accidentally used instead of hCG and resulted in oocyte maturation.

Design: Case report.

Setting: A tertiary infertility center.

Comparison of IVF and ICSI when only few oocytes are available for insemination.

The aim of this work was to evaluate the efficiency of IVF and intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) when few eggs available for insemination. A total of 601 women (group A, mean age 31.2 +/- 2.

Anomalies in sperm chromatin packaging: implications for assisted reproduction techniques.

Sperm protamine deficiency and DNA damage were analysed employing chromomycin A(3) (CMA(3)) staining and the terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase-mediated dUTP nick-end labelling assay, respectively, in 132 patients (82 IVF, 50 intracytoplasmic sperm injection [ICSI]). The antioxidant ability of seminal plasma was analysed in 10 men, using the total oxidant scavenging capacity assay. A significant negative correlation was found between abnormal protamination and sperm parameters, including sperm DNA fragmentation (P < 0.

Vaginal gel versus intramuscular progesterone for luteal phase supplementation: a prospective randomized trial.

The aim of this randomized study was to compare the efficacy of intramuscular progesterone (IMP) and progesterone in vaginal gel (VGP) at two different doses for luteal support in IVF. A total of 412 patients, aged between 28 and 37 years, were randomized into three groups. The day after oocyte retrieval each patient began supplementation with one of the following: IMP 50 mg daily (150 patients), VGP 90 mg once daily (143 patients), or VPG 90 mg twice daily (148 patients).

Live birth after IVF in a 46-year-old woman.

Pregnancies after IVF have been reported in women aged > or =44 years, but nobody older than 45 years at oocyte retrieval delivered. We report a case of birth of a healthy child after IVF in a 46-year-old infertile woman. Ovarian stimulation was performed with clomiphene citrate, 150 mg daily for 5 days.

Tailoring FSH and LH administration to individual patients.

Many clinical trials have been carried out to find the optimal gonadotrophin starting dose for IVF. The consensus for patients undergoing first treatment and <40 years old is a range stretching from 150 to 250 IU/day. The varying ovarian response to gonadotrophins may be due to factors such as age, basal FSH, number of antral follicles and body mass index, all of which should be taken into account before choosing the type of protocol and the amount of gonadotrophins to use.

Use of antagonists in ovarian stimulation protocols.

Gonadotrophin-releasing hormone (GnRH) antagonists have been introduced in IVF to prevent premature LH surge. They bind competitively to pituitary receptors and prevent endogenous GnRH from exerting any stimulus on pituitary cells, avoiding the initial 'flare-up' effect and decreasing gonadotrophin secretion within a few hours. Pituitary reserve and gonadotrophin synthesis are not affected; therefore, the recovery of pituitary function is rapid.

Perifollicular vascularity monitoring and scoring: a clinical tool for selecting the best oocyte.

The aim of our study was to assess relationship between perifollicular vascularity and outcome of in vitro fertilization (IVF) cycles. In our study, women who received embryos originating from oocytes developed in well vascularized follicles had a statistically higher pregnancy rate than women who received embryos chosen without considering follicles of origin.

Endometrial preparation for frozen-thawed embryo transfer with or without pretreatment with gonadotropin-releasing hormone agonist.

Objective: To test the efficacy of endometrial preparation with exogenous steroids, without pretreatment with gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) agonist, in women with normal ovarian function.

Design: Prospective randomized study.

Setting: Private outpatient infertility clinic.